WikiLeaks cables, day 17: summary of today's key points

Day 17, Wednesday 15 December The Guardian • Local police have been sabotaging UK efforts to stem the flow of cocaine through Ghana . • The US and Britain are becoming increasingly concerned about the destabilising impact of South American cartels smuggling drugs into Europe via west Africa. Der Spiegel Repeated Swiss attempts to get the Americans and Iranians to meet and discuss Iran's nuclear program were seen in the US as a dangerous annoyance . El País • During the Spanish Presidency in the EU in the first six months of this year, cables show that that the US put pressure on Spain not to lift the arms embargo to China . The embargo has been in place since the Tiananmen massacre in 1989. • Cables show EU countries such as Greece, Ireland, Hungary, Germany and Denmark regularly consult US embassies before attending meetings of the Council of EU foreign ministers. Le Monde The French press comes under scrutiny in the diplomatic cables. In one six page document in January 2007, the American embassy in Paris wonders why French journalists do not cover ethnic minorities' issues more – particularly integration – and concludes that journalists in France often consider themselves intellectuals whose job is more to analyse events and influence readers than report straight facts. They also come from the same elitist schools as politicians and do not think their priority should be to challenge those in power.